Matty Athearn has the hot hands at Saratoga

Young harness racing reinsman Matty Athearn enjoyed his best day of the season on Monday (April 1) at Saratoga Casino Hotel.

The 25-year-old pilot, who last year was named the Johnny Page Award winner for up-and-coming drivers at the Spa, scored a driver’s grand slam on Monday’s matinee card.

His four-bagger was highlighted by a victory behind Summit City Sonny (Dover Dan) in the Open Trot. The five-year-old Summit City Sonny prevailed in the Open for the first time this season after being a solid force in the trotting feature in 2023 for trainer Jesse McAssey.

On Monday, Athearn guided Summit City Sonny out to an early lead that saw him click off first-half fractions of :27.2 and :57.1. Pocket-sitter City Of Hope (Jimmy Devaux) followed the leader’s every move before ending up second-best to Summit City Sonny, who stopped the timer in 1:57 for his second win of 2024 and his first in Open company.

City Of Hope completed a $19.60 exacta while Snowpiercer (Brett Beckwith) finished third in his debut in the $15,000 Open to round out a triple that returned $62.

SUMMIT CITY SONNY REPLAY

Summit City Sonny, who is co-owned by Adam Friedland and his trainer Jesse McAssey, paid $8.20 to win in the mild upset.

Athearn’s four-win afternoon puts him in third place in the driver standings with nearly two months of the racing season now complete.

Live racing continues on Tuesday afternoon with a matinee that starts at noon.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

by Mike Sardella, for Saratoga Raceway